geoharvey

World:

¶ The six-turbine Coonooer Bridge wind farm in the Australian state of Victoria has become the first operational wind farm from the Australian Capital Territory’s wind auction process. The 20-MW wind farm is expected to become fully operational this month. [SeeNews Renewables]

Wind farm in Australia. Author: Steven Caddy. License: Creative Commons, Attribution 2.0 Generic

¶ According to a study led by the University of Leeds, about 80,000 air quality-related deaths are prevented each year as a direct result of the introduction of European Union policies and new technologies. They led to a 35% reduction in fine particles in the atmosphere since 1970. [CleanTechnica]

¶ In Scotland, 70% of those polled want to see more renewable energy such as wind, solar, wave and tidal, and two-thirds agreed that the next government should “continue to take forward policies that tackle greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.” Only 19% would prioritize fracking. [RenewablesBiz]

¶ Australian firm Genex Power Ltd’s 150-MW solar PV and 330-MW pumped-storage hydropower project in North Queensland has been named a “Prescribed Project,” streamlining its approvals process. The scheme, with a 185-km transmission line, will cost $424 million (US). [SeeNews Renewables]

The project will be at the site of the historical Kidston Gold Mine. Source: Genex Power.

¶ Changes in UK government energy policy have chased off investors and may have added £120 a year to household bills, according to a parliamentary report. Funding U-turns on windfarms and energy efficiency schemes have reduced investor confidence and increased funding costs. [The Guardian]

¶ Indian automobile manufacturer Tata Motors Ltd has joined RE100, a global initiative of businesses committed to 100% renewable electricity. Tata Motors is the second Indian company to join the campaign, after Infosys. This brings the total number of RE100 members to 54. [SeeNews Renewables]

Good Energy has unveiled a revised design for the Big Field Wind Farm.

¶ Plans were unveiled for a community-owned Cornish wind farm that could be the first in the UK to operate without government subsidy. New plans have the same number of turbines of the same height as an earlier scheme, but new technology allows a 50% increase in output. [Windpower Engineering]

¶ Geneva is taking legal action over a French nuclear reactor for “endangering lives and polluting water.” Some 70 km from Geneva as the crow flies, Bugey, in the Ain department, is one of France’s oldest nuclear power plants, having come into service in 1972. It supplies about 4.5% of French electricity. [The Local.ch]

¶ A geological fault running directly beneath a nuclear reactor at the Shika power plant may be active, a panel of geological experts for the Nuclear Regulation Authority said. If that assessment is accepted, the utility will be unable to restart the unit, the No 1 reactor at the plant. [The Japan Times]

US:

¶ Massachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo made it official that the omnibus energy bill scheduled to come up for a vote in April will include provisions to encourage the development of offshore wind power and create a competitive procurement process for renewables. [CommonWealth magazine]

Wind turbines in Gloucester, Massachusetts. Photo by Fletcher6. CC BY-SA 3.0 unported. Wikimedia Commons.

¶ Mississippi Power, Hannah Solar and the US Navy have broken ground on a 23-acre solar project of over 3 MW at Seabee Base, in Gulfport. Two other projects approved by the state commission include a 50-MW solar station in Hattiesburg and a 52-MW solar project in Sumrall. [Solar Industry]

¶ The Oregon Assembly passed a bill setting a target of 50% renewables by 2040 and ending coal-fired power supply in the state by 2035. The House passed Senate Bill 1547, also known as the Clean Electricity and Coal Transition plan, and the Senate repassed it the next day. [SeeNews Renewables]

Solar panels. Author: Oregon Department of Transportation. License: Creative Commons, Attribution 2.0 Generic

¶ A Japanese-owned company has received construction financing and has started work on a 27.6-MW solar energy farm in Oahu. The project, which is scheduled to be completed and operational by the end of the year, will be one of the largest solar PV projects in Hawaii. [Pacific Business News (Honolulu)]

This entry was posted on March 3, 2016 at 7:41 am and is filed under nuclear power, renewable power, solar, wind.

Tags: nuclear, nuclear power, renewable power, solar power, wind power